"Hey Res!"

"Yeah, what is it?"

"Can you do me a favor?"

"Uh-huh, sure thing...uhh, what is it?"

"This customer wants some exposition, I thought you'd be a bit better at it than me. What do you say?"

"Heh, really? That's the first time someone asked us that."

"I know, right?"

"Yeah exactly. I'll be over in a minute."

"Cool, thanks for helping me out, bud."

"No problem, I mean, this is almost exactly what I do for my job anyway."

"Great! Bye Res!"

"Bye Clear Sight."

*click*

Res set down the phone. What a wonderful invention, he thought, just what the ponies of Equestria needed. Of course, it put some mail-carrying pegasi out of business, but few enough not to be a problem. Mail still holds that...that intimate, almost sacred feel, like when you tear open an envelope or break a wax seal...no, mail will be unaffected.

Picking up the phone again, his mind wandered. But this phone... every self-respecting unicorn knows a good voice amplification spell, and some even to the extreme...but who would have thought to take an amplification spell and pinpoint it like a laser through wires and over long distances, achieving the effect of talking to a faraway pony as if in the same room? Heh, that's Clear Sight for you. Next comes wireless...hmmm.

A few moments passed, and Res finally snapped back into focus. Well, I'm getting off track. I've got a commission to do, and I already said I'd be there in a few minutes. Rising from his chair, he strode briskly across the room and left, leaving the phone dangling off the hook behind him.

--<>-------Meanwhile, in the Psychiatry Help Agency wing,-------<>--/

Clear Sight was, surprisingly, having a bad day. His customer, an obnoxious tan mare with a pale green mane and an obnoxiously accented voice, had been getting on his nerves for the entire afternoon. Why can't she just be satisfied and leave me the hell alone? crossed his mind for the hundredth time. Why'd she have to bring her whole radio studio with her, anyway? I always told Res that there's just no reasoning with the paparazzi, and this just proves my point--yet again.

"I'm sorry," he spoke consolingly in a tone dripping with antipathy, "but the story really isn't the same without both of us here, okay?"

"Nonsense," replied the mare with a scoff, "I'm sure you'll find a way to recall all the details without him. Besides, you might feel like loosening up when you hear the rumors," she leaned in conspiratorially, "that you are the one running the whole organization from behind, pulling the strings as a front..."

She paused. "For a kingdom-wide criminal extortion organization!"

"Yeah, now I know you're kidding me, because you know just as well as I do that no life-loving pony would ever say that in front of a real-life Mareiarty. If you'll wait just a minute," he gestured towards a chair for the scowling journalist and her recording crew, "you can over-analyse and misinterpret my words while sitting down, of course, but when Res gets here, we'll get into the good stuff." He muttered something about concrete shoes, and walked over to the window.

The now seated journalist scratched neurotically with a quill on her notepad before finally looking up and studying Clear Sight's face for a while, trying to get a good angle for her camera. His trademark sunglasses were perched on his muzzle, hmmm..."forever hiding the eyes which peer ever onward into the future of technology--" I'll have to remember that, she thought, scrawling a note on her pad.

Metaphorically, of course. Whether his foresight holds in the real sense as well...some of his exploits defy all logic and required too much luck to pull off... No matter what angle you look at it, something just seems off. She rubbed her temple. Ugh, I hate migraines. ...something less than savory and more than underhanded is going on here, especially recently...and I'm going to get to the bottom of this if it breaks my soul.

Clear Sight turned his head in her direction, fixing her with what she only could assume was a glacial stare-- those sunglasses are a good tactic, makes his expressions unreadable-- and muttered something about...some...antics? before directing his attention back to the window.

A polite, metered knock came from the door, and soon a grey unicorn entered the room.

The journalist's heart skipped a beat.

Of course, she had seen Resolve Spirit in magazines, photographs, from far away during social events, but in person? He held a...a sort of presence that just made her feel faint...she could practically see the rose-colored tint in the corners of her vision. A mane as grey as a charcoal fire cascaded like torrents around his horn and down his head, reminiscent of some old foreign cartoons she had read once, perfectly framing his piercing deep sapphire eyes and complimenting his more light, ashen coat. Wearing a snappy yet simple dark teal suit, he was in every way the perfect eligible bachelor.

And he was staring at her.

Too late, she realized the reason for his expression, and closed her mouth, looking away.

"Hey Res, on second thought, I'm having second thoughts on this," Clear Sight groaned, but was interrupted by the journalist: "Alright, now that you're both here," she said, checking her notes and motioning to the microphone handler, "I'd like to have a personal discussion about new developments in your company, and perhaps glean some information that could shed some light on the subject of your interests, goals, et cetera. Any objections?"

Clear Sight looked irritable, and was about to speak to his colleague when Res interjected with a flat "Not that I can see, I mean, we've kept pretty in the dark for a while now, and the public deserves to know." He exchanged a meaningful glance with Clear Sight, who gave a small smile and nodded, tapping his temple.

"But first, what's your name?" Res asked. "I don't think I caught it."

"Illesio," the journalist replied dreamily--he just asked me my name...

She cleared her throat, noticing the aside glance the two business owners gave each other. "Alright, let's keep this simple then. First question: What reason is there in the re-branding of your company's trademark phrases?"

"Oh that? That's easy," Res responded. "We thought the company was becoming too commercialized, and although the whole point of the ALPHA was to bring technology, medical assistance, and knowledge to all ponies all over Equestria, commercializing forms of charity seemed a little disingenuous. That's why we changed our phrase from 'Bringing the Horizon a Step Closer' to 'Bringing Harmony a Step Closer.'"

That seemed harmless enough.

"Why, as of recent events, has the company's choice in commissions been reevaluated?"

"For the same reason, of course. We now exclusively focus on inventions and works for the benefit of the greater public, instead of some jobs we had taken on in the past for the sole use of wealthy investors. That particular choice was a little tricky, as we risked angering those same investors that supply us with funding, but to be completely honest, we could do the same job we do now with half the money."

"That leads us into my next question. Does your company still place a great emphasis on humanitarian works?"

"Absolutely. All profits go to charities, such as the Equestrian Red Sun, the Whooves Disability Awareness Foundation, and the Foundation for the Limitation of Undeserved Terror To Animals, and we keep a public tab on all transactions that can be viewed in both the Canterlot and Crystal Empire Business Centers and the town halls for every major city and town nationwide. We are proud to be a source of help for these charities."

"Great! These answers are satisfactory, but now we come to the real reason behind my visit. For years, the entire nation has been clamoring over what the past of this company has been, and the accounts given contradict each other almost completely. I was hoping you could, for the benefit of the public, reveal the truth of the matter?"

There was a long pause, and finally Res sighed. "Well, yes," he said. "Our past has been hidden for far too long, and I fear if we cover it up any longer, we'll pay for it dearly. One last thing," he asked, "We're on air, right?"

"Yes, we are," Illesio replied, gesturing to the radio pony staff behind her, who all nodded.

"Perfect," said Res. "This needs to be raw and unedited. Straight from the horse's mouth, as it were. Will you start us off, Clear Sight?"

"I called you over to tell the story, but yeah, sure man," Clear Sight grinned, sitting down and rubbing his hooves together. "The story of the ALPHA begins back in the year of 20XX, when Mr. Magic Man over here was still in school and I was a lonesome drifter dropout. This is a story about the power of friendship, ingenuity, and an impeccably tailored series of coats. Now, everyone knows us as these real famous ponies, but we weren't always this way. At one point in my career..."

Illesio settled back into her chair and listened intently.

This is going to be good. she thought.

--<>-------Holy actual hecking crap, what's going on here-------<>--/

Author's Note

hopefully i have a decent few OCs, what the hell
UPDATE 6/13/18: RETCONNED CORANTO
But nonetheless, I wanted to challenge myself by making an introduction in a day and trying to make a well-rounded story out of it. Here's day one's work.

Total time spent on this chapter: 3 hrs 45 minutes
Version 2

Cheers and go hecc yourselves,
Betless